Inside the library, Hector leaned his chair back lazily. He looked at Hermione, who had her head down, completely absorbed in a sea of books, and smiled.
She really is pretty, Hector thought, spacing out for a moment until Hermione called his name and brought him back to reality.
Hermione blushed under Hector's gaze. She was quite annoyed by his idleness in the library.
"Hector, this is a library. We come here to study. Otherwise, why are you even here?" Hermione stared at Hector's slacker posture with deep dissatisfaction.
Hector obediently straightened up and picked up the book in front of him, putting on a pretense of diligence.
"Please take this seriously—you're holding the book upside down!" Hermione found it both funny and exasperated to look at Hector, whose mind was clearly elsewhere.
Hector put the book down and cautiously tested the waters. "Actually, I think the most important part of learning magic is practice, while theory—" He glanced at Hermione's expression. Although it didn't seem to have changed much, her grip on her book tightened.
Hector changed his tune just in time.
"—is also quite important, right? How can you do practical work without mastering the theory, right? Reading, I'm reading." He could only obediently flip the book right-side up, pretending to read with rapt attention.
Hector read for a little while. He had already read most of the material in these books over the summer, and what attracted him now were the books in the Restricted Section.
One still had to learn a bit of Dark Magic; it was a necessary means for self-preservation and establishing oneself in the world. Not everyone was like Harry, who could duel by trading Expelliarmus and Avada Kedavra.
Going around with a sword in your hand versus having a sword and choosing not to use it were two different things.
As for these conventional spells, Hector had either already learned them or could grasp them almost instantly with a single glance. Finding himself utterly bored, Hector propped his book up, planning to sneak in a quick nap to pass the time.
Hermione simply didn't know what to do with Hector. She saw right through his intentions, packed up the things on her desk, and gave Hector a tap that made the sneaky boy jump.
Hector looked at the little witch standing in front of him out of nowhere, stunned for a second before quickly lowering his head with a guilty conscience.
"If you can't get through the reading, why don't you go practice some spells instead? That way you won't fall asleep again, will you?" Hermione didn't dwell on it further and simply made the suggestion. Hector quickly stood up and wiped the drool from the corner of his mouth.
"Of course! I know a really great place." Hector hurried toward the exit of the library, with Hermione clutching her books right behind him.
They walked out of the library and onto the stairs. The stairs cooperated nicely this time, allowing Hector and Hermione to walk across them smoothly and steadily.
Hector soon led Hermione up to the eighth floor, where Hermione gave him a skeptical look.
"You surely aren't taking me back to the Gryffindor common room, are you?" The Gryffindor common room was on the eighth floor. Hector didn't answer; he just put on a mysterious air and beckoned her to follow.
"Hector!" Hermione stood her ground, refusing to move. She felt like Hector was just messing with her. Wasting time was completely unforgivable to Hermione, who strictly scheduled her daily routine.
"Don't tell me you're going to practice spells in the Gryffindor common room, Hector."
"Of course not. Just follow me." Finding Hermione standing there looking furious, Hector walked right up to the little witch and looked intently into her eyes.
"Trust me, it's an absolutely perfect place."
Half-convinced, Hermione followed behind Hector; the sincerity in his eyes had won her over. Still, Hermione swore that if Hector was actually playing a prank on her, she would never speak to him again.
They soon came to a huge tapestry depicting Barnabas the Barmy being foolishly beaten by trolls. Hector stopped walking and simply paced back and forth in front of the tapestry.
This was a long and deep corridor. Hermione looked around, and there didn't seem to be any rooms nearby suitable for practicing spells. Convinced that Hector was definitely making fun of her, tears quickly welled up in her eyes.
Hector paced back and forth in front of the tapestry several times, repeating silently in his mind: *I need a place to practice spells.*
When Hector finally stopped walking, Hermione prepared to give him a proper interrogation.
"Hector, why—?"
Hermione stared at Hector with tears swirling in her eyes, looking deeply aggrieved. Unsettled by her mournful and angry gaze, Hector pointed behind her.
"Turn around, Hermione."
Hermione turned around. A door was slowly materializing on the wall. Hector quickly grabbed her hand, pulled her forward, and pushed the door open. Before them lay a spacious room, complete with practice dummies set up in the center.
"Didn't I tell you the truth?" Hector used his other hand to wipe away Hermione's tears, but he lingered, refusing to let go of the hand he was holding.
Hermione abruptly jerked her hand out of Hector's grasp and glared fiercely at him. Her glare lacked any real intimidation, however, and instead made Hector's heart skip a beat.
Hector fished a Chocolate Frog out from inside his robes—one that Aberforth had shoved into his pocket before leaving—and it came in handy just now.
Hector unwrapped the Chocolate Frog, and a brown chocolate frog leaped out of the box and landed right in Hector's palm. Hector handed the Chocolate Frog to Hermione.
Hermione opened her hand, and the Chocolate Frog hopped from Hector's hand onto hers.
"My grandfather said eating a Chocolate Frog makes you feel a lot better." Hector used his wand to clean up the trash, clapped his hands, and stood up.
"Welcome to the Room of Requirement."
Hermione quickly stood up as well. The tear tracks on her face were still quite visible, but she was smiling broadly now.
Hermione wiped away the remaining tears on her face. Looking at Hector standing to the side with that cheeky grin, she felt a burst of exasperation with nowhere to vent.
Hermione drew her wand from her robes and struck a dramatic dueling pose.
"Since you've seen me cry, I simply can't let you leave alive!" Hermione put on a tense, stern expression.
"Let's duel! Only one of us walks out of here!"
Hector also drew his wand, striking a pose he thought looked very cool.
"Come on, let me see what you've got!"
Hector had expected a long-range exchange of magical artillery, but Hermione charged straight at him with her wand raised.
From that point on, rather than a duel, it was more like Hermione venting her remaining scrap of anger on Hector. Hector didn't fight back—mostly because he didn't dare.
Besides, Hector figured that a little girl hitting someone didn't even hurt. Why not embrace an activity where you didn't have to suffer and could even help build a relationship?
Hermione's anger quickly evaporated. She straightened her collar, smoothed down her hair, which had been ruffled from the scuffle, and resumed her usual proud, haughty demeanor.
Having taken a beating, Hector tried to act pitiful to win some favor. But Hermione completely ignored him, acting as if she couldn't see his mugging at all, and immediately demanded that Hector start teaching her spells.
"So what spell are we practicing today? I remember there was a really interesting spell in Charms class, it seemed like..."
Seeing Hermione's earnest expression, Hector wanted to cry without tears.
You don't work a beast to the bone like this—all whip and no carrot.
Thinking that, Hector still honestly and seriously answered Hermione's questions.
By the time the two of them emerged from the Room of Requirement, dinner time had long since passed. Hector told Hermione to go wait for him in the Gryffindor common room while he went to the kitchens to grab some food. Once Hermione left, he looked down the long flight of stairs and decided that free fall was probably much more convenient.
Hector returned quickly—so quickly that Hermione was a bit surprised. When she saw him carrying full plates of food in both hands, Hermione finally felt a genuine wave of hunger.
The two large plates of food were quickly devoured. Hermione wiped her mouth with great satisfaction, deciding that Hector looked much more pleasing to the eye now. As for Hector, he was patting his round belly and leaning back against the sofa without a shred of posture.
"Thanks for today. The advice you gave was very useful," Hermione said, standing up and looking at Hector with complete sincerity. She had truly witnessed Hector's exceptional talent for spells and his abundant theoretical knowledge. Even Hermione felt that no matter how tricky the question, Hector could provide a flawless answer. Even for spells Hector didn't know, he could learn and master them at a speed beyond her comprehension.
Strangely enough, when the Lumos spell came up, the little witch still caught the brief, poorly concealed unnaturalness on Hector's face. His adamant insistence that he didn't know the Lumos spell, coupled with his evasive eyes, made Hermione feel that something was a bit off.
For this proud little prodigy, Hermione realized today that there really were people out there even more formidable than her. However, this didn't crush her spirit; it only made her feel she needed to work harder. So Hermione resolved in her heart to read a bit more back in the dormitory to keep up with Hector's pace.
"You're welcome. Get back and get some rest early," Hector said, utterly exhausted. He had spent most of the afternoon explaining spells to Hermione, which had drained his stamina; right now, he just wanted a good night's sleep.
"Oh right, make sure you aren't late for Potions class tomorrow. I heard Professor Snape isn't someone you want to mess with," Hermione warned, watching Hector as he headed toward the boys' tower.
"Don't worry," Hector waved a hand. "See you tomorrow!" With that, he vanished into the boys' dormitory tower.
"See you tomorrow," Hermione murmured softly, almost as if speaking to herself, until Hector's figure disappeared from view, and then she skipped away toward the girls' dormitory.